Players can be kept on rosters for 3 consecutive years, including trades. Then they hit waiver wire. Keeps top players in circulation.

We like it because it keeps the league fluid. Top teams can't hoard top players and it gives lower teams a better chance each year. Plus, with more talent hitting the wire each year, drafts are more interesting because of decent available players.

My league keeps 5. we have been doing this for a few years and everyone loves it. few reason why is everyone still loves to draft, and if u have more keepers then 5 the draft is so dilluted that there's no pt. in drafting. another one is strategy, my team was stacked so i gotta think more on which ones i keep, otherwise its too easy. and let me tell u, nothing beats a good live draft!!

I'm in two leagues that keep 5 players. I'm also in two dynasty leagues that retain entire rosters from one season to the next. I've also been in 10 keeper leagues, which can suck if your team isn't very good.

One type of keeper I do is in a football league but could be applied to baseball. Basically its all based on when a player gets drafted. No players that were drafted in the first rounds can be kept. You can keep players that were drafted in rounds after that but the only catch is that you have to draft them three rounds earlier than the year before. So if a guy was drafted in round 4 and you decide to keep him. You must draft him in round 1. Round 5 picks draft in round 2 and so on. There's a cutoff at round 11 I believe where players drafted in round later than that all must be drafted at round 12. You keep as many or as few as you want. I realize that I didn't explain it fully and left out some stuff. I'd have to look at the league rules to get the full details.

benjapage wrote:do you guys find that when more players are kept, it is harder for the lower-end teams to bridge the gap?

Of course it is harder to bridge the gap when more players are kept. But if you have a serious group of owners, it is way more fun! You have to scout prospects and know your stuff, opposed to only having to wait a year or so to neutralize a fool's draft.

Our league goes by the Rotisserrie Rule Book...the first year you keep you have to keep 7 but can keep up to 15. After the first year you are not required to keep any but can keep up to 15. When you draft a player you have him for three years unless you extend his contract after the 2nd year.